James Benamor
James is the owner and Managing Director of the Richmond Group. Having started CGS, the first company in the group, in his spare time whilst working for another company in 1999, he was struck at the number of people who had been left out in the cold by mainstream lenders and High Street Banks. In the early days James didn’t have the money to invest in advertising so instead he had leaflets printed and delivered them on foot himself. During his first full time month James delivered 30,000 leaflets, walking approximately 300 Km in the process. As Managing Director of The Richmond Group, James has a close involvement with most departments in the company. He spends most of his time talking to team managers and meets with every operator in the group at least once every 6 weeks.
“When I started The Richmond Group it was because I didn’t want to work in a boring 9 to 5 job in a stuffy company. I had worked for other financial companies and had been frustrated at their appetite for growth and the speed with which new ideas were taken on board.
From the beginning I have had two rules: the company has to grow by at least 50% every year, and work has to be fun for everyone. Whilst the first has been surprisingly easy the second has required significant effort along the way. As with any journey there have been highs and lows, but today I can honestly say that there is no other Finance company that I would rather work for. As with most people who work for the Richmond Group, the reason for this is that the people I work with are exceptional. Whilst we all still have a lot to learn before we can say that we are the best, we are making good progress along that path.”
Some of the companies that have inspired me along the way:
Innocent – for their sense of humour and fun, and their refusal to cut corners when it comes to what is important.
Google – For the speed of delivery, development and change. Google has changed the world in less than 5 years.
Zopa – For being one of very few true innovators in the financial services sector.
Easyjet – for taking a lot of the bureaucracy, pomp and ceremony out of air travel and in the process making it more accessible to normal people.”Email: james.benamor@rgroup.co.uk
Twitter: @jamesbenamor
Marc Biles
“I’m the Director of Special Projects. Originally, I joined The Richmond Group in 2003 as a call centre operator – not long after starting though, I came up with the notion of paying secured loan brokers for their tenant applicants and pestered James with my idea constantly. Eventually, he let me have 2 hours a day away from my day job to prove that it could or couldn’t work – that wasn’t enough though, so I worked at home and snuck into the office on evenings, weekends and bank holidays to get it done. It wasn’t until we had to employ new operators and rent extra office space that James finally realised the value of my idea. The project became our brokerage department, which spawned Tenant Loans and then became Loanfinder. I was made a Director in 2004 at the age of 22, just 18 months after I started here.
Since then, I’ve played a key role in the expansion of RG’s business – not only did I co-create FLM Loans, but I created our other key brands such as Debt Line and Payment Guard too. These days, I’m tasked with heading up a number of top secret projects that will help propel RG onto a global stage, as well as coming up with new ideas to keep us ahead of our competitors.
Email: marc.biles@rgroup.co.uk
Twitter: @marcthebeat
Mark Burgess
“I’m The Richmond Group’s IT Director. I joined RG in 2008, having spent the previous 14 years working for a much bigger financial services company where I was tired of being tied up in bureaucracy and finding it difficult to get anything meaningful done. Now though, I get to work every day alongside a great team of talented, motivated people every day working on ground-breaking projects creating innovative and different products. It’s the fast moving, challenging and unconventional nature of The Richmond Group that appeals so much to me, and I love that there’s a real recognition that by allowing me to work with the very best people, I can help build software, services and products that change the world.
Email: mark.burgess@rgroup.co.uk
Liz Benamor
“I’m the Facilities Director at The Richmond Group, although I first came in as an operator at Post Plus in 2005. After just 2 weeks, my manager left and I was left holding the baby – however, I took the time to learn all the tasks that needed doing and by 2008, I was asked to oversee not just the day-to-day management of Post Plus but also our Facilities services in Bournemouth. It’s quite unrecognisable from how it was, and today I’ve got a team of loyal, dedicated staff who’ve played a key role in creating our amazing range of offices and installing things like our sleep pods, commercial size kitchen, relaxation areas and the rbucks café. As far as I’m concerned, RG Facilities are not just there to tick a box – we’re here to drive change and improvement across the group for the benefit of all, making us one of the best companies in the UK to work for.
Email: liz.benamor@rgroup.co.uk
Sam Wells
“I’m a Director within FLM Loans – I joined as a trainee Director in 2008 but before that, I’d been working in Brighton for various corporations. As I was making my way up the corporate ladder, I constantly found myself tangled up in red tape and surrounded by staff on a slow, meaningless road to retirement. After relocating to Bournemouth to work for RG though, I feel proud to walk into an office every day to work with a team of people that want to make FLM the best loans company in the world. We’re growing rapidly but have our feet firmly planted on the ground, and we work hard to spot the details that other companies would miss. When I interview staff to join my team, I look for entrepreneurial spirit, a drive to be the best and people that demonstrate initiative and ownership when they take on a challenge.
Email: sam.wells@rgroup.co.uk
Mourad Malki
“I’m the Director of collections within FLM, I’ve overseen the brand’s development from a small company to one of the mainstays of The Richmond Group business. I’m a Director now, but I started in 2006 as a FLM caseworker taking calls from customers and processing their loan applications. By 2008 though, I’d beaten 3 other hopefuls to take on a team management role and I ended up running the highest performing team in the department, smashing targets and reaping bonus benefits. Currently, I’m working hard to develop and improve FLM’s processes to make us an industry leader in the field.
Email: mourad.malki@rgroup.co.uk